[Video] Winter is here – get good tires and keep safe

Remember – be it rain, fair weather or a blazing winter – the only thing that keeps you on the road are the four wheels and their tires. And while good ones can be expensive, here’s the difference from the low cost ones that might save your life.

From a meager Ford Ka to a high performance SUV like the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT, handling is always influenced – for better or worse – by the tires you use. And this is after we consider you got the basics covered: summer tires for warm weather and winter tires for cold weather. And remember, the vehicle’s only connection to the road (no matter the AWD, the number of electronic aids) remain the four tires. Acceleration, braking and cornering is hugely influenced by the type of tires you use. Our advice – if you live in a region where winter is really winter, always choose a proper winter tire – and when in warmer weather change them with proper summer tires. If you live in odd weather regions – let’s say UK – where there isn’t a lot of snow in winter but it can get cold in spring and autumn, you might get off using all-weather tires, as some of them are definitely becoming great (Michelin CrossClimate, Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons 2).

And by the way, you might be happy if you left your local superstore with cheap tires, but we also want to make you understand the brand is also important. This video is easily proving the difference with discount and premium winter tires – for example during the evasive maneuver the driver has two identical Audi A4 models. The cheap one has no chance to get the maneuver right and without a lucky or extremely talented driver at the wheel that would translate into a crash in real life conditions.